An estate with a rich history, dating back 225 years, has just made headlines in downtown Charleston, South Carolina, by selling for an unprecedented $21.028 million. This sale marks the highest price ever recorded for a residential property in the city.

The momentous sale occurs amidst growing concerns about Charleston’s vulnerability to climate change. Experts caution that the city might soon grapple with significant flooding, as rising sea levels are expected to submerge parts of this historic locale under more than two feet of water within the next decade, according to projections from the Climate Central Coastal Risk Finder.

Locally recognized as the Caspar Christian Schutt House, this property once belonged to the late Wayland H. Cato Jr., a renowned businessman and philanthropist. Cato acquired the estate in the 1990s for a modest $950,000 and dedicated years to meticulously restoring it to reflect its original 18th-century splendor.

Including the value of its furniture and artwork, the estate’s total sale price reached $21.575 million, according to Charles Sullivan of Carriage Properties, the realtor representing the seller. Sullivan shared these details with the Daily Mail.

Among the notable acquisitions for the mysterious new owner are a pair of matching chandeliers, famously featured in the classic film ‘Gone with the Wind.’

Among the treasures the anonymous buyer will get are a set of matching chandeliers from the set of ‘Gone with the Wind.’

The Cato family had planned to list the home publicly this fall, but an anonymous buyer swooped in with an off-market offer too good to refuse. 

‘We prepared the property this summer for marketing this fall, when we were approached by an interested parties off market,’ Sullivan said.

The exterior and the grounds of the 225-year-old estate in the heart of downtown Charleston, South Carolina that has quietly sold for $21.028 million

The owner saved the then unrenovated property (seen here) from becoming multiple condominiums and spearheaded the trend to maintain and protect large estate sized properties in Charleston’s historic district

Downtown Charleston, South Carolina, where a record breaking sale just happened but flooding is a major problem

The home, nestled neat the Battery and sea wall at the southern end of the city, totals nearly 16,000 square feet.

It includes a four-bedroom main house with triple-tiered piazzas, a two-bedroom guesthouse, a former carriage house converted into a pool house with an indoor pool, and artfully landscaped gardens.

When Cato purchased the property decades ago, it was in disrepair, with pigeons and squirrels living inside.

He single-handedly saved the then unrenovated property from becoming multiple condominiums and spearheaded the trend to maintain and protect large estate sized properties in Charleston’s historic district.

Cato used preservation architects to keep the home’s distinctive Charleston look, while updating the inside.

The record-shattering sale comes just months after another Charleston mansion sold for $18.25 million, a city record at the time.

Sullivan says the Charleston luxury market is surging, with wealthy, often younger buyers moving in.

‘People moved in during Covid like most markets, but we’ve seen younger, wealthier buyers come to town with families,’ he said.

The perfectly landscaped gardens outside the property, known locally as the Caspar Christian Schutt House,the longtime home of the late businessman and philanthropist Wayland H. Cato 

Scientists say many of Charleston’s most prized areas, including the peninsula where this mansion sits, will inevitably face major flooding they cannot control as sea levels rise

A truck barrels through the flooding in Charleston after a severe storm flooded the streets downtown

Without significant adaptation measures, these regions are projected to experience daily high tide flooding by the end of the century. A man bikes though a storm in the Battery in Charleston

The lure of charming Southern homes proves irresistible even though Charleston sees major flooding and hurricanes that flood and destroy homes

The lure of nice weather and historic homes outweighs the fear of flooding and a city that could end up underwater in Charleston, South Carolina

So why the rush to buy millions in real estate in a city scientists warn will face flooding that can’t be stopped?

Scientists say many of Charleston’s most prized areas, including the peninsula where this mansion sits, will inevitably face major flooding they cannot control as sea levels rise.

NOAA Coastal Hazards Specialist Doug Marcy outlined the future of Charleston’s downtown.

‘It shows the absolute worst possible case,’ he said in a report on the area’s rising sea levels.

‘Without significant adaptation measures, these regions are projected to experience daily high tide flooding by the end of the century.’

Marcy warned that if people are planning long-term real estate investments, they should seriously consider the risks.

‘If you’re planning for things like critical infrastructure or building something to last a long time you may want to look at an extreme scenario,’ he said.

He laid out how rising seas could impact Charleston, and concluded that, at worst, the city is around 12 feet underwater by 2100.

Rainbow row in downtown Charleston, where flooding gets so severe scientists predict the whole city will eventually be underwater

The Battery section of Charleston, where the city plans to extend the sea wall to further protect the area from severe flooding from the bay

An ambulance tries to make its way through downtown Charleston during severe flooding following a storm 

The streets in downtown Charleston get so flooded they need to be professionally pumped as it’s impossible for normal cars to get through

The deal actually totaled $21.575 million after Cato’s estate threw in some furniture and art, local realtor Charles Sullivan of Carriage Properties said

Charleston is surrounded by water, the famous pineapple fountain sits downtown on the bay, an area that gets flooded during storms

Charleston’s beauty outweighs its problems for many buyers. The metro Charleston luxury market for 2025 continues to out perform the year before despite flooding

Charleston offers low taxes, year-round mild weather and proximity to the beach but the flooding is so severe it may be underwater by the end of the century

A winding staircase inside the renovated property that was just sold for a record amount in Charleston’s historic district

A car tries to make its way through the city, which is already planning to raise the existing sea wall along the Battery to help protect historic downtown

A boat party on a good day in Charleston but these waters rise so high they flood the entire downtown area, putting homes at risk

And Charleston isn’t just dealing with rising water. Severe storms and hurricanes are also battering the area and the flooding has only gotten worse.

The city is already planning to raise the existing sea wall along the Battery to help protect historic downtown. The Battery Extension Project in partnership with the US Army Corps of Engineers will extend the existing historic wall around the full perimeter of the peninsula which will doubles as storm surge and tidal flood protection.

Marcy said the areas most at risk include downtown and that anyone purchasing real estate they plan on keeping for generations should be worried about how long the home will actually last.

‘I would be worried yes if I had serious real estate investment I want to keep in the family,’ he told local News 5.

‘It’s the homes that are built right on the street level. The higher the first floor the more room you have.

‘The problem is the access to those homes because the streets will be flooded.’

It appears buyers don’t care. 

According to Sullivan, who sold the record breaking home, the metro Charleston luxury market for 2025 continues to out perform the year before.

‘The five to ten million price range exceeds last year’s total with 65 properties closed, and 11 under contract.

‘The ten million plus price range is following the same trend with nine closings to date for 2025, and 3 under contract.

‘Last year a total of eight homes closed above ten million with a high of $12 million.

‘This latest transaction is one of three on the peninsula to close this year for $15 million or more and is the first to exceed $20 million in metro Charleston.’